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Fake news, or real?

It appears to be real. Fading them out between 2019 and 2021. Not really that many model lines. The Fiesta, Focus, Fusion and Taurus come to mind. It’s a shame. The Focus is a great little car, even better in a ST or RS version!
 
Seems to be the case. Even the police are going to SUV's now. All anybody wants to want to drive anymore is a station wagon or a truck! Who'd a thunk it?
 
It would seem perhaps more of a concession to the imports (and a congested segment) that Ford is bowing out of sedan production. Honda, Toyota, Nissan and others crushed Ford in car sales totals based on the numbers I found. Sure crossovers and such are popular but so are Camrys, Accords, Corrollas, Altimas,....every one of those models outsold Ford's leading sedan the Fusion last year.
 
Bob Lutz was quoted in John Clor's column (February 2018 issue of Mustang Times, page 64) as predicting "...the auto industry, as we know it, will be dead in 20 years or less..."

Fairly dire prediction.

Then again with Uber operated self driving transportation appliances replacing personal automobiles, as one "future world" vision sees it, the automotive landscape could indeed be unrecognizable. The economic impact of this shift in the automotive sector and the regulatory infrastructure needed to create a closed transportation environment could indeed appear very Orwellian when it comes to cars.

Cancel my coffee order and get me a double Bourbon.....................
 
Sedans.....but they will be making a LOT of crossovers and SUVs. The world will keep turning and sedans will come back after they get tired of what ever is the hot now.
 
Time to find a good used Lincoln Continental or Grand Marquis.
 
JeffTepper said:
Then again with Uber operated self driving transportation appliances replacing personal automobiles, as one "future world" vision sees it, the automotive landscape could indeed be unrecognizable. The economic impact of this shift in the automotive sector and the regulatory infrastructure needed to create a closed transportation environment could indeed appear very Orwellian when it comes to cars.

Cancel my coffee order and get me a double Bourbon.....................
Click to expand...

I've been thinking a lot about that. For driverless cars to really work, non-driverless cars would have to be eliminated from the roads. Then everyone would just use Uber or an Uber-like government-run service to order up a ride. What would that mean for our classics???

Self driving transportation appliances...I like that.
 
crustycurmudgeon said:
I've been thinking a lot about that. For driverless cars to really work, non-driverless cars would have to be eliminated from the roads.
Click to expand...
Good luck with that. Far too many people will be unwilling to give up the freedom of driving themselves. Rural areas, small towns, even larger communities could never manage something to accommodate all the transportation needs. The vast majority of people cannot afford to give up a conventional car to purchase something new and automated. The government certainly doesn't have the means to financially support it either. These are all just obvious top of the head thoughts but pretty accurate.

This "utopia" is decades away and only if our people continue to allow themselves to be manipulated down the path. Meanwhile I will keep destroying the planet driving my old technology rides.
 
I think Ford's move is in response to the Millennials reportedly not interested in owning cars. My son bought my grandson a used car. He's just graduating from high school. The car sat unused- he didn't want to get a part time job to pay for insurance, and when I offered to show him how to take care of the car he couldn't even figure out how to raise the hood. Jeez, how times have changed- I've been crawling all over engines since I was an early teen.
 
A lot of the manufacturers are going to a subscription-based rental program where you don't own the car anymore. And don't have to pay for insurance it's all lumped into a monthly payment. I guess that's the new thing.



Sent from my moto x4 using Tapatalk
 
RapidRabbit said:
A lot of the manufacturers are going to a subscription-based rental program where you don't own the car anymore. And don't have to pay for insurance it's all lumped into a monthly payment. I guess that's the new thing.
Click to expand...
That's an interesting concept. Have to look into more details about that approach. For nothing more than an A to B mode of tranport might make some sense.
 
It's not cheap. Cadillac is doing it, Volvo and BMW are now also. I'm sure the rest will join in.

https://www.volvocars.com/us/cars/new-models/xc40/care-by-volvo

What makes Care by Volvo unique

• No down payment, no price negotiation
• One flat monthly rate with no surprises
• Includes premium insurance no matter where you live
• Maintenance and excess wear coverage
• Upgrade to a new Volvo in as little as 12 months
• Subscribe easily online or via the app
• 15,000 mile allowance per year



Sent from my moto x4 using Tapatalk
 
Uh-huh...subscription monthly rates are $600 or $700. No thanks.
I like cars that are already paid for, so all I have to put out is insurance, registration, gas, and maintenance items.
 
I'm with you Randy.

I prefer to own my cars. I don't even like having a car payment at all. Usually we pay cash. I'd rather have a couple year old car and not have a payment.

Cadillac is even more. It's around $1500 a month, but you can change cars more often. I guess for the Jones's having the newest car is important. That's why so many people lease now. Lower payment, new car every 3 years. renting a car forever.





Sent from my moto x4 using Tapatalk
 
Mach1 Driver said:
I think Ford's move is in response to the Millennials reportedly not interested in owning cars. My son bought my grandson a used car. He's just graduating from high school. The car sat unused- he didn't want to get a part time job to pay for insurance, and when I offered to show him how to take care of the car he couldn't even figure out how to raise the hood. Jeez, how times have changed- I've been crawling all over engines since I was an early teen.
Click to expand...
Concur - my son views cars as another 'appliance'. I tried to get him to help me change the oil in his 2007 Jetta and he showed zero interest.
He has since bought (on his own nickel) an Eco-boost Escape and it is a beautiful vehicle. He is to my joy, paying his own way on it.

I, in the meantime, buy a 2001 F-250 with some things that needed attention, but the monkey-wrencher in me makes this easy.
 
One thing I see when travelling the world is that the US is kind of all alone in vehicle choices and sales. Most European countries still have lots of models of cars we call a station wagon. They don't want huge SUV's or crossovers and have no need for a big truck. Asia is moving towards the US type of market but only in some areas. South America is all small cars and lots of Diesel, propane and hybrid technology.
I have been in Europe a lot this year and get station wagon rental cars with 6 speed manual AWD and a diesel. Even a small 2.0L Diesel will pull in 6th gear. So much more fun to drive and you can drive 140mph on the autobahn. Wouldn't want to go that fast in an SUV.
I have a Fusion and it's not a bad car but I recetly rented a Mazda 6 diesel wagon in Germany and it was a blast to drive and had the build quality and lushness of a much more expensive car. I wish I could bring the diesel AWD 6 speed Fusion (Mondeo) wagon I had rented a while back, it was much more fun to drive than my American Fusion
 
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